How we raised our funds

There are lots of ways of getting the cash together to allow you to get your cinema started up. Find out how other groups have done it.

Blue Door Cinema

“Initially the four of us who run Blue Door Cinema invested our own money, and then paid ourselves back on a weekly basis. There aren’t huge set up costs – it is actually quite doable. After a year, we were able to prove that we were running successfully and that we were benefitting the community, and we got Big Lottery funding of £10,000 which was amazing – and we were able to get a giant screen with it!”

Black History Studies

“Black History Studies film screenings are free to attend, as we raise the funds to pay for them through running a number of courses, museum tours and presentations for which we charge a fee.

We received our first external funding in September 2012, when we took part in Project Tottenham – Tottenham’s first community film showcase. We were awarded £2,000 from Film London, which was a real bonus. For the project, we organised the ‘Life & Times of Marcus Garvey on Screen’ project, which took place at the Marcus Garvey Library in Tottenham.”

Llancarfan Community Cinema

“When we first started, we used equipment on loan from Cinema For All. Since then, we’ve had the generous support of our local Creative Rural Communities initiative, a regeneration fund administered by Vale of Glamorgan Council. This money has helped us to buy a high definition projector, blackout blinds for the village hall and comfortable chairs.

Memberships are also an important way for us to keep our revenue up. Each season we sell around 40 family and individual memberships, priced at £30 and £15 respectively. We sell locally sourced ice cream, tea, coffee and soft drinks, and have just started selling second-hand DVDs, which brings in a steady income.”

SIFA Fireside

“At SIFA Fireside we're always looking to put on new activities for our homeless and vulnerable client group, and we were fortunate to secure some private funding to launch our free weekly cinema in 2012, working with community cinema network Open Cinema.

When this came to an end in October 2013, I made an application to Awards for All as our cinema events had become highly popular. We stressed the community and inclusion aspects, since our clients are often excluded from the opportunity to see films in a cinema setting, and we were awarded £8,800. This means we’re now in a position to begin a new season of films to continue bringing all of our clients together.”